Sugar. Would a food by any other name taste as sweet?

As it turns out, the answer to that question is yes, and our food industry is literally banking on consumers’ growing appetites for sugar and sweeteners. Americans are expected to consume 11.2 million metric tons of sugar this year alone, much of it through processed foods and in the guise of dozens of different names for sugar.

Take a look at these statistics:

• The Lancet Diabetes and Endocrinology journal reported that 74% of products in the U.S. food supply contain added caloric or low-calorie sweeteners, or both.

• A study published by the open-access medical journal BMJ Open found that nearly 60% of an average American’s daily calories come from ‘ultra-processed’ foods – products that contain flavors, colors, sweeteners and other additives that you wouldn’t use at home. These products are the main source of added sugar in the U.S. diet.

• The USDA reported that the average...